Many people may want to rank Matt Moore ahead of Brandon Beachy, especially considering the ridiculous numbers Moore posted (including striking out 15 batters over 9.1 innings for the Rays at the end of ’11). With as much upside as Moore has, he will still pitch in the AL East and we really don’t have a Major League track record to go by. Beachy, meanwhile, thrived in 25 starts (3.68 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 10.74 K/9) and pitches in the National League. They are two of the brightest young pitchers in the game and, while Moore is likely the better option in keeper formats, if we are just talking about 2012, give me Beachy.

The question facing Adam Wainwright is how he will recover from Tommy John surgery, because a healthy Wainwright is a Top 10-15 option. While we can’t expect him to immediately return to the pitcher that he was, let us not forget that he was 39-19 between 2009 and 2010, posting ERAs of 2.63 and 2.42 and WHIPs of 1.21 and 1.05. It’s obvious that he’s a risk, but considering where you can get him, he is well worth the gamble.

Josh Beckett has not been the most consistent pitcher throughout his career, but when he’s on his game, he has proven to be one of the best. Which Beckett will we get in 2012, though? Probably somewhere in the middle. Make sure to check out my projection by clicking here.

We all thought Ubaldo Jimenez was going to regress, but did anyone actually expect him to fall as far as he did? It’s obvious that bad luck was an issue, with a .314 BABIP and 65.0% strand rate. His other numbers were similar to what he did in 2010, including an 8.60 K/9 and 3.73 BB/9, so there is a very good opportunity to buy low.

Shaun Marcum is often a pitcher that is overlooked, but don’t fall into that trap. Now fully healthy (he’s pitched at least 195 innings each of the past two seasons), Marcum has shown just how much potential he has. Obviously, we would’ve hoped for his K/9 to improve with the trade to Milwaukee (7.09 K/9 in ’11 vs. a 7.60 mark in ’10), but is anyone going to complain about a 3.54 ERA or 1.16 WHIP? With pinpoint control and the potential that he dials up the strikeouts, the numbers could get even more impressive. Make sure to check out my 2012 projection for him by clicking here.

I recently took a look at Brandon Morrow, highlighting why he could prove to be significantly more than just a strikeout pitcher. Make sure to check it out by clicking here.